A Rainy Fourth of July

It is the Fourth of July, and I am writing from my front porch. A steady rain is falling. Usually when I work from my porch, my back is against the house, and I directly face the street. When it rains, I have to move my writing table tight against the house, so it...

La Crosse Is Alive This Summer

  It might be my imagination, but I think there is more wildlife in and around La Crosse this summer than in other recent years. I’ve been seeing more groundhogs and beavers. My yard has chipmunks and red squirrels, two species that show up only every third or...

Blackbird

This morning I was sitting on the front porch of my house when a blackbird flew within inches of my face, smacked into my living room window, and dropped onto the table alongside my coffee cup. I left it where it lay, hoping it had knocked itself out and would soon...

Deadbroke to Bath

The water level on Lake of the Woods was four feet higher than normal this year. When we boated to our usual campsite on Deadbroke Island, we found it mostly underwater. For several seasons, my friends and I have talked about moving the location of our base camp, and...

At the Canadian Border (Part 2)

As mentioned in the previous blog, my fishing buddies and I arrived at the Canadian border with contraband eggs and fishing bait. Since the Canadian customs office is on Canadian soil, officials there were not allowed to simply confiscate our prohibited goods. Instead...

At the Canadian Border (Part 1)

Manyu and I made it home from France the evening before I was supposed to leave for Canada. We arrived jet lagged and tired, so I knew I wouldn’t be able to switch gears, unpack, repack, purchase an Ontario fishing license, restock my tackle box, and complete the...
Steven Simpson